Ivane Kupradze, a Georgian hero

Ivane Kupradze from Borjomi, Georgia dreamt of becoming a ranger since he was a little boy. Hiking trips with his grandfather inspired him to dedicate his whole life to protecting nature.

Photo: Panda Agency

Now Ivane is a ranger in the Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park in southern Georgia, and is in charge of securing and monitoring the territory, managing rangers and creating their action plan. “Protecting nature should be the mission of every person in the country” Ivane says, adding that “nothing would exist without nature, if you think about it.”

“I would love to mention that rangers from Borjomi-Kharagauli and other protected areas are heroes. They are enthusiasts who work for minimal remuneration and love for nature.” Ivane and his team face challenges such as poaching and illegal logging on a daily basis.

This video is part of the FLEG II Forest Heroes series, dedicated to people who take care of the forest and save it for future generations. The program, of which IUCN was a partner, was funded by the European Union, completed its work in 2017.

In the video, Ivane talks about trainings organized by FLEG that gave him learn to enforce and prosecute forest violations more effectively. The sessions were the first time Georgian natural resource law enforcement officials received legal and practical training directly from active judges, one from the Borjomi Magistrate Court, whose jurisdiction includes a significant part of Borjomi-Kharagauli National Park in southern Georgia.